Tower construction



May 19, 1931. H. o. HILL TOWER CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 27. 1929 INVENTOR Patented May 19, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HAROLD O. HILL, OF ASPINWALL, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO RITER-CONLEY MANU- FACTURING COMPANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF TOWER CONSTRUCTION Application filed February 27, 1929. Serial No. 343,075.

This invention relates to improvements in structural steel towers of the type used in supporting high tension transmission lines, telegraph wires, and the like, and more particularly to new and improved supporting or foundation means employed for erecting the towers on unlevel ground, and commercially known as leg extensions for towers.

Heretofore, various constructions have been employed for erecting towers on hillsides or unlevel ground in order to avoid the great expense involved in leveling the ground to provide the proper foundations. For instance, concrete piers have been employed; also, in some cases, structural steel members have been utilized. In the latter instance, however, the said leg extensions have been used only where the tower proper or the base thereof has included horizontal struts connecting the corner posts or legs of the tower; the said extensions being connected with the horizontal struts and braced from the tower proper or other superstructure.

It is an object of thepresent invention to provide a simple and efiicient leg extension for towers of the type specified comprising a construction that may be utilized without the employment of the horizontal struts or other super-structure at the base of the tower, and embodying means whereby the leg extensions are braced from the ground, as distinguished from being braced from the tower or by structural members attached to the tower.

Further objects of the present invention are, to provide a new and improved stub construction that may be utilized for erecting towers on unlevel ground without the necessity of the usual excavating and back-filling; to provide an extension leg stub construction including standardized members that may be fabricated at the shop without predetermination of the exact level conditions of the ground at the tower site, and kept on hand by the tower erector and utilized when needed; and to provide a simple and etficient stub construction that may be placed in the ground prior to erecting the tower and upon which the tower may be positioned at a minimum of expense and labor.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an application of my invention: Fig. 1 is a side elevational view, showing a base portion of a tower mounted on the stub construction or leg extension embodying my invention;

Fig. 2, a side elevational view of the stub construction taken at right angles to the view of the stub of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3, a horizontal sectional view taken on line IIIIII of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, A designates generally a portion of a transmission tower construction of rectangular shape in cross section and including corner members or legs 5 and diagonals 6, the lowermost diagonals of the tower being secured to the lower ends of the legs 5 or to the corner members at the base of the tower proper and to horizontally disposed members 7, the lowermost of the members 7 being positioned well above the base of the tower or the lower ends of the legs 5.

It is very desirable to provide a tower construction of a character that eliminates members close to the ground line, such for instance, ashorizontal struts extending from corner to corner and disposed close to the ground line, as such members prevent the cultivation of the ground within the tower base; and in my construction, such members are dispensed with.

The leg extensions of the present invention include a stub construction embodying cer tain features of stub construction shown in United States Letters Patent granted to me January 1, 1924, No. 1,47 9,180. In the present case, however, I have provided an ad justable stub construction including a plurality of telescoping members having coopcrating means for adjustably securing said members together and to the lower ends of the legs 5 of the tower.

The leg extension or stub construction, as illustrated and as preferred, is designated generally as B and is designed to be connected with a leg of the base portion of the tower. The construction includes a grillage 8 made up of a plurality of cross members 9 connected by angle members 10, centrally disposed channels 11, and a short section of 1 .;The form of stub shown atthe rightot i an I-beam 12, to whichthe lower end of the m stub proper isattached by means of bolts.

The adjustable leg extension or stub in- 'cludes a short section of angle bar 13 having a slight bend at its-lower end, a relatively long intermediate'section 14:,"31161 an upper section 15, the latter being designed to have its upper end connected with the lower end of the'leg 5. 116, 17 and 18 designate lap splices or overlapping portions ofthe stubsec tio'nsand tower leg; Each of the'sections 13,-

1 1 and 15, as well as the lower endof the leg 5,. are formed'with'closely spaced openings through which bolts or fastening mean sare passed for adjust-ably securing said members together, said' apertures being designated a,

b, c and (Z, respectively. It will be noted that the legiextension or stub comprises a .plurality of adjustable telescoping members of Such charaoter'that the extension leg may be assembled to meet varying conditions of ground elevatlon.

1 isnot a leg extension,andl1ence does not have the intermediatesection 14 of the leg extension shown at theleft of said figure. In

each form of'stub, I-preferably attach to one ofthe sections a stabilizer 19 comprising a longitudinally extending angular member,

functioning to resist strains in one direction and'bending moments in another direction.

Secured to the upper section 150i the leg 'f extension and attached thereto, preferably l near-the lower end of the leg- 5 of the tower,

Ifprovidea ground brace 20 including, as shown, a plurality, of telescoping angle bar sections 21 and 22 having a lap splice 28,

each formed with holes e for the reception of bolts.- Thelower section 22 of the said. ground brace is connecteid at its lower end toan an cho-r member 24, and the upper end of section ,21isconnected to the section of thestub.

- ,or leg extension bymeans of an angular jplate25.

; .4 .Inpractice, and as shown, I employ two ground or shear braces 20. Said braces, it

willibe noted,.-brace the leg extension from theground and by this means Idispense with any bracing from the tower or other structuralelements connected with the tower properfor stabilizing or bracing the leg ex: tension. These braces extend inwardly and downwardly into the ground from the upper end of the leg extension, and may be embedded to any-desired depth in the ground.

Iclaim:-. p

1; The combination with a towerconstruction free of horizontal struts adjacent the base ofthetower and having-a leg, of a leg extension comprising a stubincluding a plurality ofadjustable members secured to the to-werionly by saidleg'; and aground brace for-the stubhaving'an' end embedded in the to thestub above thegroundlevel.

'- able member's."

.of the stub above the ground, said ground braces each including a'plur'a lity ef adj' st The combination with 'a-tower construction fr ee of horizontal struts adjacent the base of the tower and having a leg, of a-leg extension comprising-a stub having anchoring means at its lowerendrand attached toithe leg at its upper end, said extension including a plural-ity'of adjustable members,- and a ground brace attachedto the stub, said stub and'brace having portions embedded in the ground ground'. I V V. V d. The" combination with a tower proper comprising a plurality o'flegs, diagonal bracing above: the "lower ends or the legs connecting the legs, said toweriadjacent the lower ends of the legsbeing free of other structural members, entering into its construction and an independent leg extension de tachably secured to a tower-leg, said extension comprising a stub including a plurality tower, an adjustable "anchoring extension at the lower end of one iof saidilegs, and a ground brace extending-from'the tower, sub stantially, atlsaid base line and 'inreverse di- 1gection to the adjacent diagonal brace memer. V V In testimony whereof I affixmy signature. V V O; HILL.

and portions projectingabovethe 7 upper end ofthe ground and an end attached i 

